This invention relates to an apparatus for withdrawing a flowable product from a container, and more particularly, it concerns such a withdrawal apparatus which can be positioned onto an outlet plug connected to the container for withdrawal of the container contents through a tube-shaped withdrawal channel in which material flow is controlled by a closing element.
In the packing industry, containers such as foil bags having a sealed outlet plug mounted to the bags are increasingly used. For withdrawal, which is usually achieved either by gravity feed of the container contents or by a membrane pump, a closable withdrawal apparatus is positioned onto the outlet plug. The functioning of the known withdrawal apparatus, or dispenser, is unsatisfactory, particularly when there are substances in the container which are sensitive to the environment or environment polluting and thus require careful sealing from the environment. Further problems arise when coarse or adhesive products, such as jam, must be withdrawn.
A particular problem arises with regard to containers in which the outlet plug must seal the inner part of the container hermetically against the environment during transportation. This sealing is either achieved by a wall of the container onto which the outlet plug is welded or by a special plastic closure plate welded into the outlet plug. If this sealing arrangement must be opened before positioning the withdrawal apparatus onto the container, two essential disadvantages result. Firstly, part of the product may flow out when placing the withdrawal apparatus on the container, provided that the container is in a particular position. Secondly, it is no longer possible to sterilize the inner parts of the withdrawal apparatus and the outlet plug after the withdrawal apparatus has been positioned, which is of substantial importance when there is sensitive organic material packed in the container, such as food.